During Semester 2, the Year 10 STEM class have undertaken a unit on solar energy. After learning about the theoretical concepts, students subsequently applied their knowledge to begin designing and prototyping their own solar cars. After testing and refining were complete, final designs were manufactured using 3D printing and laser cutting techniques as the cars were then carefully assembled and ready to race. Congratulations to Jeremy 10SKL who had the fastest car overall.

Welcome to the final edition of Concordia Connect for 2018. My hope is that during this hectic end of year busyness you may be encouraged by the joy the Advent season brings as we prepare to celebrate the coming of our Lord. As another year draws to a close, I am thankful for and celebrate all that God has done within our College.

Some highlights from this year include:

The continued strong reputation of our College within the community and the high demand for enrolment

The warm and trusting relationships between the Campuses which continue to bond us as one R-12 College

The wonderful manner in which the Year 12 class finished the year with respectfulness, inclusivity and joyful celebration

The energy and enthusiasm of our student leaders who so humbly served the College

Our unified and embracing community spirit, strengthened by dedicated parent volunteers and wonderful community events

The wise guidance of our College Board as they govern the College and forge new strategic directions for the future

Our new partnerships with Flinders University and the University of Melbourne which will form the basis of our Vision for Learning research projects

The emergence of a new College Vision for Learning, which will be finalised in 2019 and drive an innovative and dynamic approach to student engagement and wellbeing

The continued dedication of staff who serve with such passion and selfless commitment

Our amazing students who have a genuine love of learning.

Lastly and most importantly, I thank God once again for his greatest gift to us — Jesus. This Christmas season, how will we respond to this great gift? Let me suggest that whether we are kings, lowly shepherds or seekers, an appropriate response is to ensure the commercial trappings of Christmas are secondary to our focus on Jesus Christ and his lived example of selfless love and forgiveness. It should be remembered that the greatest gift we can give our family and friends at Christmas is the gift of love.

Thank you for your support and partnership with us in 2018. I wish all of you a very happy and blessed Christmas.

Last week, the Year 8s took part in the annual Connected Unley program. Here are some of their reflections on the three-day event:

Throughout last week the Year 8s assisted the community by participating in ‘Connected Unley’, a program dedicated to serving our local community. Time was spent at The Salvation Army, where we heard inspiring stories about their hard work and determination to increase and encourage people’s community lives. We then visited the local museum and collected information from various places and historical artefacts scattered throughout the suburb.

The next day consisted of volunteering in different places around the neighbourhood. This involved numerous activities such as baking biscuits for the Mary Magdalene Centre at a local church, playing music and games at a nursing home, and packaging necessities for the homeless/people in need.

We faced many challenges, but as a team we overcame them. These acts have shone a light to many people in our community, helping them realise that there is a community out there who cares for them. It has also shown the Year 8s the importance of community and how much help can be provided, along with the difference that it makes.

Alyssa 8AMA

In Week 7, the Year 8s participated in Connected Unley. We applied our motto of “Engage, Achieve, Serve” in the Connected Unley program. We were split into two different class groups consisting of three classes per group and within our classes we were further separated into groups of three or four. The first class group had the classes 8VNT, 8LSI and 8JCA. These classes participated in Connected Unley on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday while the second class group of 8AMA, 8RCR and 8MRI were involved with Connected Unley on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. On the first day of the Connected Unley program we engaged with the community of Unley. This involved receiving talks from the Head of The Salvation Army Unley, the Mayor of Unley Mr Michael Hewitson and Cultural Development Officer Mr Matthew Ives, as well as going around Unley to learn about its history and peoples. On the second day we actively served the community of Unley in a variety of different ways. Some students went over to The Salvation Army and made hygiene packs for the less fortunate members of the Unley community. On the third and last day of the Connected Unley program, our aim was to achieve. We reflected on what we did in the Connected Unley program. We came together in our groups and produced a video reflection, which not only was to be reflective and informative, but also showcased our creativity. The Connected Unley program was beneficial, not only to us, but to the entire community of Unley because we applied one of the most important commandments that Jesus taught in Mark 12:30-31: “… Love your neighbor as yourself …”

Drama Club this year saw our member numbers increase. From Term 2 onwards, 15 Year 10 & 11s would meet in the Drama Studio every Thursday afternoon for an hour to rehearse and prepare for their end of year shows. The focus is Theatre in Education, and this year we presented to our usual audience of Year 7s, but also to Year 8s. The topics were Managing Friendships and Developing Resilience. Both themes feature within the Year 7 curriculum, however for Middle School students to watch their senior peers perform and share with them is quite powerful.

Each Drama Club student chose to share their own experiences of when they were in Year 7, developing a show that looked at the reality of high school and all of its highs and lows.

Year 8 students Lara and Aaron said, "It was extremely relatable and raw to watch. I loved being able to see and connect with their stories."

"It was very engaging because it related to situations that some of us have experienced before."

All students are to be commended for their hard work, dedication and courage to step up and perform to their peers. I am so very proud of all they achieved this year.

In what has become an anticipated event in the Year 10 Geography curriculum, students plan, construct and deliver an interactive lesson for the St John's Campus students, to learn about issues regarding conservation of our oceans. Students explore the impact of oil spills, sand dune erosion and plastic in our oceans with a hands-on (and messy!) activity, and learn how they can help. An amazing way to end the course and the year!

On Monday, 3 December approximately 60 St John's Campus students, five Concordia Campus Music students, Mr Noble and four professional musicians from the Hindley Street Country Club band, along with 16 Media students as crew, recorded a music video in our TV studio. The song was ‘Happy Christmas’. With a nativity scene, fairy lights and Santa outfits all packed into a very crowded studio it was a fun exercise enjoyed by all. It was particularly appreciated as a fine finish for me as the last class of my teaching career at Concordia. The cross-department school project was a dynamic way of showing what can be achieved when we bring people of different ages, talents and creative ideas together in a multi-faceted project celebrating Christmas and the birth of Jesus Christ. Well done everyone! Watch out for its promotion on YouTube in the next week or so!

Our Year 12 Design & Technology students began the year by identifying a need or challenge which could be solved by manufacturing a product. Over the next three terms, they learnt the necessary skills and spent many hours designing, refining and prototyping their intended outcome. Through hard work and determination, every student successfully completed their own individual high-quality product and the collective culmination of their exceptional efforts was proudly displayed at the Annual Art Show exhibition. Well done to all students on their outstanding achievements throughout the year.

All visits for 2018 for students in Year 8 and for the Meningococcal B Vaccine Herd Immunity Study are now complete.

If any student was absent for any of the visits and has not had their vaccine though a public clinic at Eastern Health Authority or the GP then please make an appointment for them to catch up on this as soon as possible.

Students in other year levels can also catch up on missed doses of vaccinations.

Students who participated in the Meningococcal B Vaccine Herd Immunity Study ‘B Part of it’ are eligible until 31 December 2018 to receive any missed doses of this vaccine.

The year has come to a spectacular end in Drama with many classes performing for a variety of audiences. Year 9s performed an Australian Melodrama to the residents at Malvern Resthaven, another Year 9 class performed a play all about Christmas to the Year 5s and 6s from St John's Campus, and the Year 8s have been performing a range of pantomimes for the Reception and Year 2 classes. The Drama Centre has been a real hive of activity and it has been wonderful to see the Middle School Drama students enjoying themselves on the stage. We’ve had many delighted audience members and we can’t wait to do it all again in 2019!

Year 7 'Ancient Civilisations'

A key highlight of the Year 7 program is an Individual Study where students research, through the Global Context of Scientific and Technical Innovation, important and enduring contributions to human development that have been made by the people of a chosen civilisation or society. This task enables students to display the research and organisational skills they have developed over the course of the year and supports the acquisition of practical skills through the models they build to represent the 'enduring contribution'. Student work went on display on Thursday, 6 December during the Murtoa Showcase and our Year 7 students should be extremely proud of what they have achieved. There were many outstanding models and a great depth of analysis regarding the unique impact each of the enduring contributions had in the past and how this is still evident in the present day.

Mark GaskinYear 7 Pastoral Leader

Year 8 Science Fair

One of the highlights for the Year 8s in 2018 is the ‘Science Fair’. During ‘Science Fair’ students had to design a practical task or science experiment (prac). This experiment had to have testable variables that could preferably be displayed numerically. Once the students had designed their prac they had to do the test. They had to organise a time, place and all the equipment.

Once all the students’ prac had been completed, the students had to work on displaying the information to students, teachers and parents. Students were judged on: Best Presentation (won by Amber 8AMA and Kate 8AMA), Most Innovative (won by Samuel 8AMA, Aidan 8AMA and Matthew 8AMA), People’s Choice (won by Noah 8LSI and Oscar 8LSI) and finally Overall Winner (Cameron 8JCA and Elijah 8JCA). The winners of these categories received a small prize and $20 to donate to Tear Australia to help people in need. Together the winners choose the following gifts:

Wow what a night! Year 12 students and their parents celebrated the end of their studies at Concordia with a sit down dinner for students in The Suaviter and a cocktail function for parents in The Nautilus Centre. Thanks to the team of over 20 Year 10/11 parents and P&F members who volunteered across the evening. The College was buzzing with excited students and proud and nostalgic parents.

We are so proud of our Year 12s and wish them every success in the next step of their journeys.

The winner of the Concordia College TV Studies subject award is Emma 12SBAB. We congratulate her on her very hard work and excellent achievements across all the media tasks this year. The competitiveness within the class was very high with only a few points separating the top students. Congratulations and best wishes to all TV studies students on their passionate and determined efforts this year.

This year Concordia hosted the Year 8 Lutheran Schools Public Speaking Competition, which saw two students from each of seven Lutheran senior schools across the state competing for a perpetual shield. After a small internal competition of a high standard, Chelsea 8AMA and Amber 8AMA were chosen to represent Concordia. Chelsea spoke on the topic 'What a laugh' and Amber spoke about 'A glimmer of hope'. Both girls acquitted themselves very well. The competition was eventually won by St Martin’s College from Mount Gambier.

On Monday, 26 November, Katelyn (12HRO) was awarded first place in Section I: Arrangers in School Years 11-12, of the Australian Society for Music Education (ASME) SA Young Composers Awards 2018 for her piece ‘The Campbells Are Coming’. Katelyn was also awarded second place in Section E: Composers in School Year 12 for her piece ‘Horizons’. A fantastic achievement!

Congratulations to Eli (10NMC), Year 10, for being selected to represent the state in the U17 Football Federation South Australia (FFSA) team playing in the Ultimate Fiji Soccer Cup in December.

Well done to Georgia (9TPR) who has achieved Distinctions in both of her RAD ballet exams (Advanced Foundation and Grade 8) this year.

Congratulations to the following students on receiving outstanding results in their recent AMEB Piano exams: